Nick Woodier, senior security investigator on the Well being Providers Security Investigations Physique (HSSIB) (Credit score: HSSIB)
Digital affected person file (EPR) coaching is commonly not adequate to equip employees with the data wanted to make use of programs successfully, based on a report.
A thematic assessment into affected person issues of safety related to EPR programs, printed by the Well being Providers Security Investigations Physique (HSSIB) on 27 November 2025, discovered that EPR programs might contribute to the dangers of affected person care being “missed, delayed or incorrect”.
The assessment, which examined 112 of the HSSIB’s investigations from 2018 to the top of Could 2025, discovered that inadequate employees coaching in how one can use EPR programs contributed to ensuing hurt “on affected person security, organisational efficiencies and wider nationwide efforts to digitise healthcare”.
Nick Woodier, senior security investigator at HSSIB, advised Digital Well being Information: “We have now heard via our investigations that restricted coaching of employees in how one can use EPR programs within the scientific surroundings has not all the time ready them to make use of these programs safely.
“For instance, we’ve heard assumptions that an EPR system might have performance in-built to stop affected person security incidents – corresponding to to cease the clinician prescribing the mistaken dose of drugs – however in actuality this may increasingly not all the time be current or configured appropriately.”
HSSIB discovered that employees coaching “didn’t all the time replicate how a system could be used within the ‘actual world’, nor what to do if the EPR system failed”.
Trusts ceaselessly reported that coaching “was not taught by individuals with expertise of utilizing the system in scientific observe” and there was “restricted refresher coaching following introduction of latest safety-critical performance or updates to enterprise continuity processes”.
“The protection of sufferers was put in danger by EPR programs the place they created situations inside which a affected person didn’t obtain care, their care was delayed, or they obtained incorrect care together with from being misidentified,” the report stated.
Commenting, Ben Jeeves, chair of the Digital Well being Networks Scientific Security Officer Council, stated: “Coaching, due to the basic human interface with expertise, is arguably some of the necessary mitigations to make sure is put in place and needs to be recognized throughout a strong scientific security course of.
“When scientific threat assessments spotlight coaching as a management, that management is barely efficient whether it is really delivered, embedded and maintained.
“The size and depth of coaching required for protected, assured use is commonly underestimated and due to this fact beneath resourced. Because of this, employees are left with out the data they should use the system accurately, recognise dangers, or safely keep away from errors.
“If EPRs are to genuinely enhance security somewhat than introduce new, unmitigated dangers, we should deal with complete, role-specific coaching as a core patient-safety requirement, not an non-obligatory additional.”
Dr Yat Li, vice chair of the Digital Well being Chief Scientific Data Officer Advisory Panel, stated: “EPRs are complicated programs. Growing and delivering the precise and related quantity of coaching alongside to help expertise change is challenged inside useful resource constraints of an more and more demanding well being and care service.
